Time cycle controller



zo, 193s. J.

H, srALEY TIME CYCLE CONTROLLER Inventor ttorneys by the accompanying drawing, in which.. hub I3 at the end of the reduced portion. Fig 1 is a, top plan View of a structure em The disks I5 and I6 are herein shown as being 35 bodying my invention; identical in shape and size and an advantage is f Fig, 2, a Side elevation; found in this fact in that all of the disks emo Fig* 3, an end elevation; ployed may be produced by one die and only Fig. 4, a detail in end elevation illustrating a one Style f disk need be' made Each disk is change in setting; provided with a periphery substantially 180 in 40 Fig. 5 is a detail in section on the line 5-5 extent Comprising that Dart 0f-a circumference 40 of Fig, 6; of a circle the center of which is on the axis of Fig. 6 is a detail in section on the une s-s the shaft ll- The other 180 of the periphery of Fig. of the disk comprises substantially that part of Fig. '7, a, detail in section of the timing disk. the circumference of a circle whose radius is less 45 mounting; and than that of the lrst circle. The oli-set between 45 Fig. 8, a detail in end elevationof the time the larger and Smaller circumferential parts is indicator. sloped and interconnects therebetween with Iike characters of reference indicate like parts rounded COIIOUIS- NOW it S t0 be seen that by throughout the several views in the drawing, placing. two of these identical diskson one hub Iote-nted Dec.l20, 1938' l I y UNITED STATES L PATENT oFFicE Joseph H. Staley, Columbus, Ind., assigner to Electric Switch Corporation, Columbus, Ind.

Application February 15, 1937, Serial No. 125,784

4'Claims. (Cl. 20o-32) This invention relates to means for controlling thick rubber washers 5 on each side of the subswitching operations in one or more electrical base 1. Standards I0 seated on the sub-base I circuits. There are many applications of the insupport a shaft II by suitable journal boxes in vention, one such being in illuminated signs such which the shaft revolves. Some means is em- 5 as are designed to simulate motion as well as to ployed to drive this shaft, such means being here 5 give a variable display. In this particular field shown as an electrically operated motor I2 interit has been the .customary procedure to devise connected with the shaft through a spur gear some sort of mechanismwhereby the individual reduction drive. In some installations, this mocircuits are closed and interrupted by a mechator may be a synchronized motor although not l0 nism nxed in character. That is, the switch connecessarily so. 10

trolling mechanism was predesigned for the par- Mounting hubs I3 are placed on the shaft II ticular sign and if any variations in that sign to be xed thereto b y some means, here shown were to be made from time to time, then the conas by two set screws I4, Fig. 7, so that as the troller was obsolete. shaft I I may revolve, the hub I3 is carried around It is a primary object of my invention to protherewith. l5 vide a very simple control structure which may On each of the hubs I3 are mounted a pair of be adjusted to close and interrupt the circuit or disks I5 and I6, each disk being Provided With e circuits throughout the entire range of any concentral hole therethrough S0 eS t0 permit the oeivabie timing without having to add or subtract disk to slip over a reduced portion 0f the hub I3,

parts. A lfurther primary object of the inveny the reduced portion fitting slidably through-the 20 tion is to provide a circuit controller comprising heles 0f the dSkS S0 aS t0 Carry the disks Cenrotating disks all of which are assembled on a trally of the shaft Il- Some means is provided single line shaft which may be varied in length t0 rigidly engage these two disks I5 and I6 in a for the required number of shaft members, and desired Operating position With the hub- The which structure may be produced at, a, relatively means herein shown and described comprises a 25 low cost and will be extremely durable throughpin fixed inthe head 'of the hub I3, Fig. 2, out a long period of time. These and other oband eXtendIlg IltO e hole in the disk l5, with a jects such as certain advantages in the assembly. nut n SCreW- hleafely engaging Over the end and manufacture of the parts thereof which win 0f the reduced portion 0f the hub I3 which eX- 30 be apparent to those versed in the art will be tends threllgh the V'O disks t0 Permit that nut 30 readily indicated by the following description of l1 t0 be drawn up snugly .against the disks and one particular form of the invention as illustrated Compressibly against the head 01" ShOuder 0f the A sub-base plate 1, here shown as of metal, is I3, one disk may be adjusted circumferentially supported from and above a metal base 6 where about the hub in respect to the otherdisk so as it is retained by screw-bolts 9 passing through to secure an eifective peripheryof the larger the plate 1 and seated in the base 5, and to reduce circle running' from 180 t0 360 01"v any spacing the noise made bythe machine, and also to lessen therebetween. g

vibrations going to or from the machine, I place While the rounded corners at the juncture of 55 the inclined surface between the smaller and larger circular peripheries causes those portions to be somewhat less than the slight identation therebetween when one disk is revolved 180 in respect to the other is not sufficient to permit operation of the switch.

For example, Fig. 3, the corner A of disk I5 is carried around clockwise from the corner B of disk I6 to give the total circumferential line running from the point C of the disk I6 around the disk periphery to the point A of the disk I5,

or in other words, that distance A B has beenadded to the distance C B of the disk I6. This relative adjustment of one disk to the other is secured and maintained as follows:

The disk I6 is first placed along on the shaft II, over the hub I3 and positioned on the pin 35, whereby, as the hub I3 may be revolved on the shaft II by the head of the hub, the disk I6 may, through its pin connection, be likewise revolved. On the outer end of the shaft II is fixed an indicating disk 36Which is initially turned t0 a starting position such as zero. With the indicator 3B thus set, the cam disk I6 is positioned to have one of its shoulders at the lift or drop position for the roller 21 as desired (as pointed out below), whereupon the screws I4 are tightened to fix the hub I3 to the shaft I I. Then the second disk I5 is brought over the hub I3 against the disk I6 and the shaft Il turned to bring the indicator disk 36 around to the next operating sequence of the roller 21, whereupon the disk is revolved to bring its contour into con' formance with that operating position and the nut I1 is then tightened against the disk I5 to grip it securely against the disk I6 to form the then completed cam comprised of the two disks. The. indicator 36 is adjusted as above indicated relative to any fixed point such as the pointer 31 mounted onthe post 24.

While I have here shown, Figs. 1 and 2, six sets of the disks carried on the shaft I I, more or less may be carried on the shaft by varying its length as the conditions may warrant, depending, of course, upon the number of circuits to be controlled.

'I'he combined contours of the pairs of disks I5 and I6 may be utilized to operate any desired switching mechanism, the Aparticular type herein shown being a mercury tube switch I3 of the type shown in my U. S. Letters Patent No. 1,906,- 118, issued April 25, 193,3, although other types of mercury tube switches `may be employed. In the -form here shown the tube i8 is removably held by a pair of clips 2I which stand upwardly of a rocker I9 of non-electric conducting material. The rocker I9 is fixed to a cross bar 20 preferably of metal having a depending ear at each side, through which ears the bar 20 is hinged by the ears between and to the spaced apart arms of a U-shape bracket 22. The bracket 22 is bolted to a panel of non-conducting material 23, supported by standards 24 from the sub-base 1. The panel 23 preferably extends for the entire length of the series of switches as shown in Figs. l and 2,

One of the ears 25 of the bar 20 has an arm extension 26 to have its outer end in the path of the pair of disks I5 and. I6 thereunder, and for the purpose of eliminating friction and providing a smoother operating device I mount a roller 21 on the end of the extension to bear against the periphery of the disks. A spring 28 has one end fastened to the lower rear end of the ear 25 below its rocking axis and the other end to the panel 23 to normally contact the roller 21 with disks Il and I3. Metal conductor plates 20 make contact with the respective terminal clips 2| oi' the mercury switch tube I3 and have leads 30 and 3I from the respective plates to the panel 23 -to suitable wiring terminals 3l and 39 for the circuits to be controlled.

Referring to Fig. 4, as the motor I2 may cause the shaft II to revolve, the various pairs of disks I5 and I6 are revolved therewith so that the rollers 21 will'ride on the peripheries of the respective combined pairs, holding the rocker I 9 in an upper position as indicated by the solid lines when the roller is bearing against the circumference of the larger circle of the disks and allowing the rockers I9 to drop down to ride over the small circumferential periphery when that portion is presented. In other words, as the disks revolve, the switch I8 in each instance will be raised and lowered to cause the closing and interruption of the circuit through that switch tube I8 as desired. Of course, the tube I8 may be placed between the clips 2| in one of two positions, first to have the circuit closed when the tube is in the upper position as indicated by the solid lines in Fig. 4 and have the circuit open when in the lower position as indicated by the dash lines, and second when reversed, to have the circuit open when in the upper position and closed when in the lower position. This condition, of course, may be taken advantage of when adjusting the relative positions of each pair of disks I5 and I6 so as to secure the desired timing sequence be-l one circuit operation may be varied in relation to another circuit operation.

Attention is directed to the fact that' where multiple groups of cams are carried on the same shaft, the cams in each group may be adjusted independently of those in other groups so that a wide range of circuit operations may be had upon each revolution of the shaft, as above indicated. For instance, one group may control its circuit so as to give say sixteen circuit "breaks and makes per revolution, another group adjusted to control its circuit to give two breaks and makes per revolution, while other groups may control their circuits to give breaks and makes" in one part of the revolution and none in the remainder. 'I'hus it is to be seen that the structure is extremely flexible as to the range of possible circuit controls.

While I have herein shown and described my invention in the one best form as now known to me, it is obvious that structural variations may be had without departing from the spirit of the invention and I, therefore, do not desire to be limted to that precise form beyond the limitations as may be imposed by the following claims.

I claim:

l. In an adjustable timing switching mechanism, a rotatable shaft, means for rotating the shaft, at least one switch along the shaft, a sleeve shiftable both longitudinally and revolvably of the shaft, means for securing the sleeve in seiected positions on the shaft in reference to said switch, a composite cam carried by said sleeve having two co-axial parts to form an adjustably shaped periphery, means removably engaging one of said cam parts with said sleeve to carry that part in fixed position therewith, the second cam part being revolvably carried by the sleeve to be shiftable therearound in respect to the first cam part, a member carried by the sleeve securing the second cam part on the sleeve whereby the two cam parts initiallyadjustable one in respect to the other may be revolvably and longitudinally adjusted as a combined unit on said shaft and then fixed thereto in reference to said switch, and a switch actuating member into the path of which said cam is located to rock the actuating member and thereby operate said switch in timed sequence in accordance with the cam shape and the rotation of said shaft.

k2. In an adjustable timing switching mechanism, a rotatable shaft, means for rotating the shaft, at least one .switch along the shaft, a sleeve shiftable both longitudinally and revolvably of the shaft, means for securing the sleeve in selected positions on the shaft in reference to said switch, a composite cam carried by said sleeve having two co-axial parts to form an adjustably shaped periphery, means removably engaging one of said cam parts with said sleeve to carry that part in fixed position therewith, the second cam part being revolvably carried by the sleeve to be shiftable therearound in respect to the first cam part, a member carried by the .sleeve securing the second cam part on the sleeve whereby the two cam parts initially adjustable one in respect to the other may be revolvably and longitudinally adjusted as a combined unit on said shaft and then ilxed thereto in reference to said switch, and a switch actuating member into the path of which said cam is located to rock the actuating member and thereby operate said switch in timed sequence in accordance with the cam shape and the rotation of said shaft, a head on said sleeve between which and said securing member both of said cam parts are compressively engaged, rsaid securing member consisting of a nut screw-threadediy engaging said sleeve.

3. In an adjustable timing switching mechanism, a rotatable shaft, means for rotating the shaft, at least one switch along the shaft, a sleeve shiftable both longitudinally and revolvably of the shaft, means for securing the sleeve in selected positions on the shaft in reference to said switch, a composite cam carried by said sleeve having two co-axial parts to form an adjustably shaped periphery, means removably engaging one of said cam parts with said sleeve to carry that part in fixed position therewith, the second cam part being revolvably carried by the sleeve to be shiftable therearound in respect to the first cam part, a member carried by the sleeve securing the second cam part on the sleeve whereby the two ca-m parts initially adjustable one in respect to the other may be revolvably and longitudinally adjusted as a combined unit on said shaft and then fixed thereto in reference to said switch, and a switch actuating member into the path of which said cam is located to rock the actuating member and thereby operate said switch in timed sequence in accordance with the cam shape and the rotation of said shaft, a head on said sleeve between which and said securing member both of said cam parts are compressively engaged, said securing member consisting of a nut screw-threadedly engaging said sleeve, said first cam part engaging means consisting of a pin carried by said head and entering the cam part.

4. In an adjustable timing switching mechanism, a rotatable shaft, means for rotating the shaft, atleast one switch along the shaft, a sleeve shiftable both longitudinally and revolvably of the shaft, means for securing the sleeve in selected positions on the shaft in reference to said switch,- a composite cam carried by said sleeve having two co-axial parts to form an adjustably shaped periphery, means removably engaging one of said cam parts with said sleeve to carry that part in fixed position therewith. the second cam part beingl revolvably carried by the sleeve to be shiftable therearound in respect to the iirst cam part, a member carried by the sleeve securing the second cam part on the sleeve whereby the two cam parts initially adjustable one in respect to the other may be revolvably and longitudinally adjusted as a combined unit on said shaft and then fixed thereto in reference to said switch, and a switch actuating member into the path of which said cam is located to rock the actuating member -and thereby operate said switch in timed sequence-in accordance with the cam .shape and the rotation of said shaft, said switch being a mercury switch and clips carried by said arm removably and reverse bly receiving the switch whereby the switch may be reversed in position as to open and closed circuit positions in respect to the travelof said cam.

JOSEPH H. HEALEY. 

